Saturday, October 31, 2015

One of my favourite trends for Spring/Summer was wearing glam jumpsuits. There are different variations of jumpsuits, from pants jumpsuits to halter rompers, and with so many types and designs available today almost anyone can rock a jumpsuit, easily creating a smart and sophisticated look. And just because the temperature has dropped (slightest, winter so far has been somewhat mild, wouldn't you agree?) doesn't mean you can't still rock this amazing trend through Autumn/Winter. With the addition of long sleeves, layered under oversized jumpers or a masculine tailored coat, the winter jumpsuit will keep you cosy and warm all the way through the colder months to come.

When choosing the right jumpsuit there are a few things you should take into account. Purchasing the right length for starters is rather important; long-sleeved pieces look elegant and classy and can hide some less-than-perfect features, ie. perfect for me. I also tend to go for a solid colour one as the continuous silhouette created by the single colour elongates the body and thus gives a more flattering shape. And last but not least, less is more when it comes to accessorizing; the jumpsuit is an overwhelming piece as is so add a pair of matching shoes and simple earrings and you are ready to go. Big no-nos are chunky necklaces or tight-high boots; those will not help carry the ensemble and you will most likely end up looking like a hot mess.

Personally, I find winter jumpsuits to be the perfect night-time outfit (despite these pics being taken during daylight) as they are versatile (yet not for the faint-hearted) and are a great base that can be layered with a jacket or coat during these colder months ahead! The one I'm sporting is from GCGME and it is so comfy, true to size and simply very gorgeous! But what do you think, jumpsuits for winter: yay or nay? Let me know below!

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

I admit, I call myself a beauty blogger and mostly write reviews of beauty products, but there are some things I just cannot get right. I look at certain websites and magazines and think to myself “Am I the only one who cannot do that properly?” or “Should I really own that many products for my face?”.

Most of my beauty posts are designed to show you what products to try or the ones you should steer clear of, as are other beauty articles out there. They also tend to focus on tips/tricks that I'm (hopefully) good at, but I have never written about the stuff I cannot do; that ends today! When it comes to beauty things, most of the time my expectations are far off from reality so I thought it would be fun to share with you a few things I'm not very good read failure at. And if you know a trick or two to help me master these things, feel free to leave me some advice in the comments section!

Applying Eyeliner

I can sort of do the basic eyeliner (remember this post? Emphasis on the “sort of”) but I have tried tapes, spoons, gel, liquid, pen eyeliners, and watched pretty much every tutorial out there; nothing will ever make me get the feline flick right. You start it off right, but then one eye looks different than the other and in the attempt of getting them evened out, panda eyes is the painful result. Refer to the very accurate picture above.

Applying Mascara

Never have I ever applied mascara without smudging it or poking myself in the eye with the wand. Apart from pulling a ridiculous fish face whilst doing so, smearing mascara all over my eyes is pretty much the norm for me. "Why do I always sneeze when I am doing this?" is the question I'd like the answer for.

Putting on Fake Eyelashes

I love falsies but boy oh boy are they hard to put on. I know practice makes perfect and not wearing them often makes it even more difficult to get them right when you're feeling a little more adventurous. I can’t possibly be the only one who struggles big time with them. For my recent Pink October tutorial, I spent roughly 10 minutes trying to settle them down but the ends refused to do so. I then ended up using a whole lot of glue and I nearly stuck my eyes shut. #FAIL

Plucking Eyebrows

Don't deny it, we have ALL over plucked eyebrows at some point in our lives. Needless to say, during my teen years I had mini eyebrows and it took hard work, endless eyebrow pencils, and resisting the urge to pluck those growing hairs to make them somewhat presentable again. My eyebrows are not what they used to be, but they have come a long way. I now refrain from ever touching my eyebrows again, and instead opt for a professional. Tweezers are simply put my worst enemies.

Fake Tanning

When it comes to fake tanning, I haven’t had the best luck in the world and I
am not really sure how people can achieve beautiful sun kissed skin without
looking streaky and orange. Countless tanning attempts gone wrong mean
one thing and one thing only: I am destined to be a pale white Brazilian forever. I have tried exfoliating beforehand, tanning mitts, spray tanners, you name it! Am I missing something here?

Applying Dark Lipstick

I've never been very good at colouring inside the lines. So no matter how many lip liners I use, bold lipsticks never go on perfectly the first time round with me. Concealer, lip brush, tissue and make-up remover must always be in hand. How do Instagram MUAs make it look so damn easy?

What beauty things do you suck at? Are you a total failure like me? Let me know below!

Monday, October 26, 2015

Isn't it funny how our skin can change dramatically overnight? Ok, maybe not overnight but as soon as the temperatures vary. Over the summer, my skin was victim of blemishes, my t-zone was oily and despite using sunscreen every day, it was still sun burnt (the Cypriot sun was not at all forgiving). Now that we start experiencing this beautiful yet chilly season, it is no surprise that our skin requires extra care. I know it’s not even that cold out yet, but my skin is already a whole lot different than what it was back in July. I see dry patches starting to form on my forehead and under my nose, which is why when autumn/winter hits I always rely on my favourite drugstore skincare brand, No7!

My mum has been using No7 for as long as I can remember, and she swears by it. So, on a recent Boots trip where I ended up picking up a few Xmas sets (read here and here), I knew I had to bring home the No7 Radiance Regime Gift Set too. It promises to give my skin the radiance boost it deserves, and is designed towards skin that suffers with dryness, dullness, puffiness or any other unwanted feature; exactly how I would describe my skin at the moment. The selected range of No7 products in this set are the following:

No7 Beautiful Skin Cleansing Lotion

I will admit that I have never been a fan of cleansing lotions; they have all disappointed me in this past so I always stuck to oil based make-up removers. But this one changed everything; it feels gentle on the skin, removes my make-up well and does not make my skin feel dry afterwards. It smells pretty awesome too which is always a plus.

No7 Beautiful Skin Radiance Revealed Exfoliator

One thing you may not know about me is that I am a “crazy exfoliator lady”. I looove a good exfoliator and this little guy is the reason I got this set in the first place. I use this couple of times a week and it really does revive my skin. Its fragrance is light yet lovely, and my skin feels smoother and fresher. Will simply have to purchase the full size and add it to my ever growing exfoliators collection.

No7 Beautiful Skin Overnight Revitalising Eye Balm

Being 23, the only thing I am really worried about is reducing my dark circles, but they never seem to want to go away. I've only been using this for a few days, so I cannot really comment on how good of an eye cream it is, but so far it’s ok. No change seen with regards to brightening the under eye area, but I like how refreshing its texture is and how soft my skin feels after use.

No7 Rapid Radiance Balm

Containing intelligent light-reflective technology, this aims to play tricks with the lighting to illuminate your skin, making it look more radiant and full of vitality. Does it work? Absolutely. This stuff is seriously amazing. I apply it over my moisturiser and under my primer and foundation, and it makes my skin look so much brighter. I've received many compliments whilst wearing this on its own too making it the ideal “pick me up” for a healthier look. Without a doubt, my favourite item in this set!

No7 Beautiful Skin Day Cream Normal/Dry

With SPF15 this works well to give the protection my skin needs during a cold winter day. Despite being thick and rich, it dries quickly on my skin. But, whilst it claims to give you a more radiant complexion after just one week I haven’t exactly experienced that yet. Will have to keep using to see how it turns out. But my skin is nourished and that is what counts right?!

No7 Beautiful Skin Night Cream Normal/Dry

I've been using this for a few months now and even featured it on my first couple of posts here on the blog. I love its texture, and how non-greasy my face looks in the morning. It is absorbed quickly and a little goes a long way, making this last for ages. Definitely worth the price tag (£13.50 full size) compared to night creams which cost 3-4 times more and work just as well.

All in all, this is the perfect introduction to a great skin care regime. Some products work better than others I will give you that, with the radiance balm being my favourite and the eye balm the least (I have yet to find my perfect eye cream, any suggestions?). But for only £14 at Boots or on 3 for 2 offers, if your skin is particularly dry and in need for something new I would recommend giving this a try. The No7 Xmas sets are amazing this year, and I already have my eye on the Ultimate Eye Palette featuring 20 shades for only £20! A girl cannot say no to such thing.

Are you a fan of No7? What is your favourite product? Let me know below!

Thank you for reading beauties and as always, have a lovely week ahead!

Friday, October 23, 2015

October does not only see the beginning of fall, it also marks Breast Cancer Awareness Month. October sees a worldwide annual campaign involving thousands of organisations, to highlight the importance of breast awareness, education and research. Breast cancer has affected my loved ones in the past, hence why this year I decided to get involved. Whether you buy a brooch to show support, volunteer, run or fund-raise, today, whatever you do do it in pink. Apart from donating, and wearing pink (pjs count as I am home sick today :/), I thought it would also be fun to create a super easy pinky make-up look to share with you all today. I hope you guys like it!

The trustworthy Urban Decay Naked 3 palette comes out to play for this look, after all is there a better palette to get the job done? I think not.

Start with a primer of your choice, it will help keep everything in its place for longer and of course, make the shades more vibrant (exactly what we want!). I used UD Eyeshadow Primer PotionOriginal.

By applying the shade Nooner (1) on my crease, I want to add depth to my eyes; I blend that in with circle movements creating a half moon shape on my crease. I then take shade Limit (2) and blend that above my crease to create a transition effect between the two shades. The key here is to blend like there is no tomorrow. The more you blend, the better the final result will be.

Next, I I apply shade Buzz (3) all over my lid and shade Blackheart (4) on the outer corner of the eyes. With a fluffy blending brush, I keep blending shade (4) to get rid of any harsh lines. I apply the same shade below my waterline, and with a clean brush, Strange (5) goes below my brow bone to brighten the eyes.

To finish off, I take Dust (6), which is really glittery (and has some fall out so be careful) and apply to my tearduct to highlight the inner corner of the eyes.

On my lips I am rocking Sleek Matte MeBirthday Suit, but given this matte liquid lipstick is quite drying, I first applied the NYX Lip PrimerNude. My lips felt so much nicer and not as drying as they would have otherwise. For a review on this gorgeous lipstick (and all of the others in this collection) see here.

There you have it. My first ever mini make-up tutorial in photos here on the blog, and what better occasion to start things off. I had lots of fun creating this look and posing for all of these photos so expect lots more to come, perhaps with less glitter all over my face and properly lined eyes. And of course, don't forget to donate (here, here, here); no matter the amount, you CAN make a difference and help others fight this battle!

Now I'm off to bed to fight this cold off.Have a wonderful weekend ahead beauties. Thank you for reading!

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

I like to shop, a lot. In fact, I may even say that I have a shopping problem. My other problems also include: zero space in my closet for anything else, forgetting about pieces I have purchased, too many pair of shoes for only two feet, too many handbags that occupy too much space and, let's not even talk about my make-up stash. One may say that I should stop shopping (just like mother does). Will I ever though? Probably not.

With amazing winter trends, it really does become very hard not to wishlist various items. I will try my very best to keep spending on clothes, shoes (I recently won £200 to spend at Clarks, so that doesn't count right?), bags and pretty much anything else to a minimum and instead, enjoy the wonderful discounts Boxing Day will bring. My weakness however: a good bargain! I'm really digging dresses for winter at the moment. I have found some gorgeous (and affordable) ones, and I now want one of each...temptation is a b*tch, I tell ya.

Believe it or not, these are all under £15 - Great Scott!- and despite being scared of ordering online due to sizing, quality, shipping, etc, I want all. Who says I can't wear print dresses for winter; payday come to mama! It's not like I will need to take out a mortgage to pay for these, so this kinda shopping should totally be allowed. Here's my train of thought:

Monday, October 19, 2015

I was going to call this post “50 shades of beige”, but that would have been weird and lame, right?!

We have been wearing beige camel trench coats for autumn/winter for as long as we can remember and whilst I find them extremely boring, recent collections show that camel this year comes with a bang, and it is by far a shade that is anything but boring. With the liked of Alexander Wang, Stella McCartney and pretty much everywhere on the high-street, the camel coat specifically is currently on a slow-burn return to both the runways and the streets.

There is something about camel-coloured pieces that instantly add chic-ness to an outfit. Camel over-the-knee boots, a beautiful beige handbag and soon-to-arrive leather gloves are already making a statement in my wardrobe, but you will agree with me that the camel coat is a must this fall. Pair it with all-cream or all dark pieces and you will find that these combinations quickly become elegant, yet relaxed, and that is exactly how I like it.

This fall, I say invest in a camel topper. It is such a versatile piece that literally goes with anything. I personally find that layering camel and dark denim work extremely well, resulting in an off-the-runway kind of look. Neutral shades are always the safe bet for this winter and I am currently obsessed with this camel everything trend, thus expect to see lots more of it here.

What do you think of this latest trend? Let me know below!

Thanks for reading beauties and hope you all have a wonderful week ahead!